Welcome to the quiz for BEST REVELATION, brought to you by Erin!
This is one of my all-time-favorite categories! Who *doesn't* love a good revelation? The shock. The anger. The heart-in-the-throat anxiety as you wait on the edge of your seat to see how it all turns out. You can probably tell that I'M sold on revelation stories.
SPIFFY DISCLAIMER THINGY! All the stories featured in this quiz qualify for the Best Revelation Story, but this quiz is not a stamp of recommendation for nomination. There are other stories which qualify for this category, but I have limited myself to twelve.
Please make recommendations for other eligible stories not included in this quiz! I love to get story recommendations. They give me a heads up about good stories that I have either missed or haven't yet read. So please toss in those recommendations for me and for others!
QUIZ RULES: Two points for getting the story and author from the quote; one point for getting it from the excerpt. Specify which is which, or you'll automatically get one point instead of two. Open hard drive and archive, *don't* forget to snip the excerpts in your replies, and don't forget the spoiler space when you post in the Kerth Revelation Quiz answer thread.
The DEADLINE for entries for this quiz is Friday, February 5th by 11:59 p.m. Results will be posted on Saturday morning.
More elaborate quiz instructions can be found here.
Now that we've dispensed with the rules and other relative information, here we go!
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Quote 1:
"See, and that's *exactly* what I'm talking about. His first girlfriend left him because she was overwhelmed by his extracurricular activities and the second one was a borderline criminal," he animatedly interpreted the facts for her. "So you can't be serious when you cite them as valid reasons for why he should have told his most recent love interest the truth about Batman."
Quote 2:
"You sure?" He sounded surprised but pleased. "You know," he added, slowing down to look her in the face. "At midnight, it's traditional for people to kiss."
Quote 3:
"Close your mouth, you'll catch a fly. Of course, you probably wouldn't even notice. A fly couldn't taste nearly as bad as a bomb, could it?"
Quote 4:
"I said I didn't have a pilot's license," he corrects as the beginnings of a smile tug at the corners of his mouth.
Quote 5:
As the numbness of the cold began to leach out of my fingers and toes, the burning sensations came back. Still, it was bearable.
Quote 6:
"We need to go to Smallville. My mom always told me that when I finally got around to telling you the secret, I needed to bring you home for dinner." His expression suddenly turns playful. "I think she plans to pull out the baby pictures."
Quote 7:
Lois whirled to face him. "Where are we going? Where do you think!" She gestured wildly. "We're going to go confront your mother about why she just threw you in the garbage in an attempt to kill you!"
Quote 8:
"Oh, you smug-faced, cow-kissing, dirt-digging, bottom-feeding excuse for a slimy piece of worm-ridden pocket lint!" Lois intoned, stepping closer to the object of her anger.
Quote 9:
"I saw you a few weeks ago in a coffee shop; recognizing you, I asked the lady who manages the till who you were and I finally learned the name of the man who saved me… Clark Kent."
Quote 10:
Everything I needed to know about Clark Kent, Superman told me that first day. And it was true. And that's why now, when he's putting it all on the line again, it's my turn. To be a friend. To be around. To stifle the impulse to withdraw, the impulse to accuse. Because he didn't tell me. But I'm going to tell him.
Quote 11:
Lois wasn't sure what was coming over her. When she first met Clark Kent, she never would have suspected that she'd think of him as a potential *date*, but she did. Maybe it was that *amazing* kiss at the Lexor. Or the things she'd realized while under the influence of the pheromone. Or what a gentleman he'd been while she was.
Quote 12:
It was time for some semblance of damage control. With as much anger in her voice as she could muster, Lois shouted, "Clark! Back on the ground! Now!"
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Excerpt 1:
"No, of course not," Clark soothed as they waited for the elevator to take them to her fifth-floor apartment. "It's just, when you mentioned the idea of Superman having a secret-"
"What?" Lois cut him off. "Don't tell me you've never thought of it. After all, it *is* a common theme with superheroes -- Batman, Spiderman, Zorro, they're *all* living double lives. And I could go on, if you like?" Lois challenged him as she stepped out of the elevator car and into the hallway on her floor.
"But they're *fictional* heroes," Clark lamely tried to prove his point, not that it did him much good since Lois was concentrating on unlocking her front door, starting at the top and working her way through all five locks.
"So you *are* jealous." She paused for a moment to finish opening the door to her apartment before dragging him inside. "And here I thought we'd already established that *I* chose *you*, Clark Kent."
Excerpt 2:
She kissed him gently. "I'm sorry it took so long for me to see you, Clark. I thought I loved Superman, and I didn't see how like him you are." She gazed at him happily, struck by a stray thought. "Hey, remember last year? I said every woman in love thinks her man looks like Superman. Turns out to be true." She giggled. "You do look like..." her voice trailed off and her eyes widened as a hundred clues whirled through her mind and coalesced into a new pattern.
She narrowed her eyes at him, a thousand thoughts battling for precedence.
Excerpt 3:
In one motion, Clark spun into the Suit and scooped Lois into his arms. Though intellectually she had anticipated and even imagined seeing the transformation, the actual sight dropped her jaw and widened her eyes. She recovered just as quickly as she noted Clark's answering smirk, narrowing her eyes and tossing out a "Showoff!" with a flip of her hair.
Clark laughed as he headed for the balcony. They took off and headed west out of Metropolis. After a few moments of silence, during which Lois did nothing more than enjoy the flight and bask in the sense of security and belonging brought on by the newfound honesty between her and her best friend, Clark leaned in to speak softly in her ear. "So, as the all-knowing Clark Kent expert, what has happened to me that is better than this?"
Lois turned so she could look him straight in the eye, no more than a breath of space between them. She smiled impishly as she said, simply, "Me."
Excerpt 4:
"For your own good - and the good of the story," he says defensively. "If Toni had found out about you any other way, you might be sleeping with the fish right now."
"Fishes," I correct him.
"What?"
"The phrase is 'sleeping with the fishes', not fish."
"I don't think that's really a word, Lois."
"Sure, it is. I fish. You fish. He fishes. It's a word." I can't believe he's actually going to argue this point with me.
"In that context, sure. But the plural of fish is fish."
"Says you. When we get out of here, I'll show you in a dictionary. For someone who makes his living with words, you're certainly a lunkhead."
Excerpt 5:
I was flying high over the mountains north of Metropolis. I was cradled against Superman's chest. It had to be Superman because he was the only one who could fly. I settled my head further into the crook of his neck only to realize that he wasn't wearing the Suit.
I'd wondered – idly and not so idly – if the Suit came off and I'd finally decided it had to. I'd seen the cape in tatters after particularly fiery rescues and the blue darkened with soot. But the next time he was seen somewhere he was clean and fresh. So presumably, at some point, he'd put on a clean Suit.
But this time, as we were flying, there was no Suit.
Excerpt 6:
"You sure sound angry."
"I am angry! But my being angry isn't the real problem. Clark, I'm hurt. I... You... You've hurt me more than I thought possible."
I'm near tears, but so far I'm holding that in check. He looks devastated at hearing me say those words. He sure doesn't feel like someone who's been lying to me.
He shifts uncomfortably in the chair. "Lois, now that I'm here, all that I can think to say is that I'm sorry. Well, that and the other thing. But it doesn't sound like you want to hear that right now."
"Other thing?"
His response is barely audible. "I love you."
Excerpt 7:
"Uh, Lois, why don't you sit down," Martha began, gesturing to the very comfortable couches in Clark's living room in a hospitable manner.
That enraged Lois like nothing else had. "No, I don't want to sit down, Martha! I need to know why you just tried to kill Clark!"
Martha took a deep breath and glanced at her son, her expression sad.
"Lois, I wasn't trying to kill him," Martha finally explained.
"Well, you could have fooled me! Not sure what else your intentions were by shoving your only son off the balcony other than trying to end his life! God, Martha! If the city wasn't in such an uproar, I'd have you arrested so fast, you wouldn't know what hit you!" Lois was getting hysterical again, and she knew it. Nothing made sense here and she didn't like it when things didn't make sense. The Kents had always seemed like the last normal family.
"I told you, I wasn't trying to kill him," Martha announced, taking a deep breath before she continued. "I was trying to make him fly."
Excerpt 8:
She scowled, and her voice took on an angry edge. "Are you really this dense, or are you just trying to punish me?"
When Clark still refused to answer, she drew in a heavy breath, took half a step backward, and folded her arms over her chest. "Well, I guess I should take your silence as an attempt to punish me, then. Which means you're an *idiot*!" She shot him a glare.
"Why am I an idiot for wanting you to love me for who I am instead of what I can do?" Clark replied defensively even as his eyes kept their hard stare.
"Because I already do," she snapped, not really considering the implications.
"You... You do?" Clark stammered, his eyes wide in shock.
"I do?" Lois asked confused. "What do I do?" Then her words from a moment ago came back to her. "Oh..." She smiled sheepishly. "Yeah. I guess, I do." She fixed him with a glare. "Of course, now the question is, do you believe me?"
Excerpt 9:
"I'm sorry to have to ask you this, but have we met before? You seem familiar, but…"
She smiled a bit, and returned her wandering eyes to his questioning ones. "Yes, Mr. Kent. You saved my life."
"*I* saved your life?" he asked, surprised. It was clear that this was not what he'd been expecting. The way he'd stressed the "I" in his sentence set her mind working once more, and she looked at his face more carefully.
*Really* looked.
Before, she'd been too flustered and nervous to take in his appearance, but feeling calmer now, she could truly take in the man before her.
When she did, what she saw so plainly made her take in a small, startled breath.
He didn't look well at all. He seemed extremely tired, his complexion was pale and drawn, and he had dark circles under his eyes…
…and he was Superman.
Excerpt 10:
"You were right, Clark. I never realized how right until tonight. You're the best friend I've ever had. And you've been here for me from day one. And I don't mean when you're wearing garish colors. Except on your tie." I give him a teasing little smile. But he's not ready for teasing yet. I let out a little sigh. "I'm sorry, Clark." He's frowning now. I've confused him.
"*You're* sorry? For what? I thought you'd be furious." I slide my hands down to his shoulders. If I let go altogether, he might bolt. He looks wretched.
"I'm sorry for whatever I did to make you feel like you still had to hide from me. That you couldn't show me all of who you are."
Excerpt 11:
"I wish you would," she said, drowning in his chocolate eyes. "When we're not about to be thrown out of a plane or covering in front of a maid or..."
Her lips were suddenly otherwise occupied.
She didn't notice when the coat around her shoulders fell to the ground as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
If she didn't know better, she'd think her feet had left the ground.
They pulled back at the same moment, both slightly breathless.
Lois looked down and realized they were hovering about a foot off the ground.
She looked up and him and saw the fear suddenly cross his face.
She smiled. "Clark, is there something you need to tell me?"
Excerpt 12:
"Well, not too much has been happening-except that I'm pregnant."
The next few minutes were filled with a flood of congratulations and hugs. When it settled down, everyone was back in their seats, but the sense of energy in the room was palpable.
It was Ellen who first asked the classic question. "When is the baby due?"
Lois answered, "The middle of June."
Sam looked thoughtful for a moment and then spoke up. "Wouldn't that make the time of conception sometime when you two were on that vacation?"
Before Lois could answer, Clark spoke up. "Yeah. That was some vacation." Then Clark leaned in and started nuzzling her neck.
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